Now claims she was never booked for 'Taking America Back' conference

WASHINGTON – Conservative pundit Ann Coulter intensified her attacks on WND last night on Fox News Channel’s “Red Eye” show, accusing those at the largest independent news site who dropped her from the “Taking America Back National Conference” in Miami of being “fake Christians.”

Coulter claimed she was never actually booked for the event, repeated her resentment over publishing her e-mail explanations to WND Editor Joseph Farah for appearing at GOProud’s Homocon event and lashed out at WND for “pushing the birther thing,” which she said is not supported by any conservatives.

“These are fake Christians trying to get publicity,” said Coulter.

Previously, Coulter called Farah a “publicity whore” and a “swine” for WND’s decision to drop her upon learning of her plan to speak to the homosexual Republican group.

In response, Farah issued the following statement: “Coulter called me a ‘publicity whore’ for my decision. But look who is on television talking about this – throwing mud, name-calling, smearing not only me but my entire staff. I will not engage in the kind of ad hominem attacks that have made Coulter so famous and that are making her even more of a media darling in this age of reckless anger and character assassination for the sake of entertainment. Every day, since we made this decision at WND, I thank God for giving me the clarity of mind and discernment to make the right choice.”

As to Coulter’s new accusation that she was never even booked for the conference, Farah had this to say: “Coulter agreed to speak. She was retained through her speakers bureau on the basis of a previous fee for an unfulfilled engagement. We promoted her appearance at the event for six months in a high-profile manner with no objections by Coulter. We were just about to pay the balance due on the remainder of the speaker’s fee when this bombshell dropped about her keynoting the Homocon event in New York one week after our conference. If Coulter didn’t consider herself booked, she had ample opportunity to tell me that during the last six months and during our e-mail conversations. Knowing how quick-witted she is, it would likely have been the first reaction she had, rather than one she had to think about for days. We haven’t asked Coulter to refund the money we paid to her for a speech she will never deliver. But, if I were making the charge that I was never booked, I would be more than willing to refund the money I was paid by supposedly ‘fake Christians,’ ‘swine’ and ‘publicity whores.'”

Farah said he will deal only with the principles involved in the issues raised by Coulter’s appearance at GOProud’s Homocon event, the facts behind WND’s decision to drop Coulter from the WND’s Miami conference Sept. 16-18.

“I have no desire to extend this public debate with Coulter, for whom I have lost so much respect, and I certainly won’t trade personal attacks,” he said. “The issue for us remains clear: GOProud, a group that supports same-sex marriage and open homosexuality in the U.S. military ranks, should not be embraced or validated by people who accept the biblical and traditional definition of marriage and the understanding that armies and navies have one purpose – to defeat enemies. My position is that homosexual behavior is a sin that should not be affirmed, condoned, encouraged or laughed about.”

Coulter also repeated her claim that Barack Obama’s failure to prove his constitutional eligibility for office, raised by WND and of concern, according to recent polls, by at least 58 percent of the American people, are nothing more than a big joke.

“He’s pushing the birther thing,” she said of Farah. “No one who is conservative believes in it either, someone who wants to get hits for his website may promote it.”

In fact, most of America’s top talk-show hosts have acknowledged
on-air that Obama’s constitutional eligibility is a valid issue,
including Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Michael Savage, Mark Levin and Lou
Dobbs – not to mention former Alaska governor Sarah
Palin.

Earlier, immediately following Farah’s announcement in WND that Coulter would be disinvited to speak, Coulter told the Daily Caller: “[F]arah is doing this for PUBLICITY and publicity alone.”

Farah said the decision was a gut-wrenching one for his team because of their fondness for Coulter as both a person and writer-speaker.

“Ultimately, as a matter of principle, it would not make sense for us to have Ann speak to a conference about ‘taking America back’ when she clearly does not recognize that the ideals to be espoused there simply do not include the radical and very ‘unconservative’ agenda represented by GOProud,” said Farah. “The drift of the conservative movement to a brand of materialistic libertarianism is one of the main reasons we planned this conference from the beginning.”

Coulter took issue with WND’s publication of her e-mail discussion with Farah concerning her appearance.

“[T]his was an email exchange [between] friends and even though I didn’t expressly say ‘OFF THE RECORD’ and I believe everything I said, he’s a swine for using my private emails politely answering him,” Coulter wrote to the Daily Caller. “[W]hy would he do such a despicable thing? … for PUBLICITY.”

She continued: “I will say that [Farah] could give less than two sh–s about the conservative movement – as demonstrated by his promotion of the birther nonsense (long ago disproved by my newspaper, human events, also sweetness & light, american spectator and national review etc, etc etc). He’s the only allegedly serious conservative pushing the birther thing. for ONE reason: to get hits on his website.”

Farah responded to Coulter’s remarks, saying, “Ann is angry. I hope she calms down and there can be some restoration, repentance and forgiveness. She said some mean things about me, but I can sleep at night knowing I did the right thing in God’s economy.”

Farah said his intention was never to start a war with Ann Coulter and committed to keeping her weekly column running in WND.

“There’s a different standard for columnists and speakers at our conference,” Farah explained. “We boast the broadest ideological forum of commentators in any news or opinion publication or website anywhere on the planet – and we will continue to do that. We think people should hear all points of view discussed openly and honestly.”

He said the issue was that the conference is a serious event “designed to provide some real leadership for those who are serious about changing the direction of this country. There is simply no room there for compromisers or for people who accept money from those determined to destroy the moral fabric required for self-governance and liberty.”

When Farah had raised the conflict with Coulter, she explained she speaks to a lot of groups and does not endorse them.

“I speak at Harvard and I certainly don’t endorse their views. I’ve spoken to Democratic groups and liberal Republican groups that loooove abortion. The main thing I do is speak on college campuses, which is about the equivalent of speaking at an al-Qaida conference. I’m sure I agree with GOProud more than I do with at least half of my college audiences. But in any event, giving a speech is not an endorsement of every position held by the people I’m speaking to. I was going to speak for you guys, I think you’re nuts on the birther thing (though I like you otherwise!).”

Farah said the speech to GOProud was very different.

“Earlier this year, GOProud was permitted to sponsor the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, the biggest event of its kind,” said Farah. “This bad decision resulted in consistently conservative groups dropping sponsorship and withdrawing from participation – much to their credit. GOProud is about infiltration of the conservative movement and dividing it from within with twisted and dangerous ideas way out of the mainstream of American public opinion. Ann Coulter is, I’m afraid, validating this effort for money. I support her speaking to people with whom she disagrees on college campuses. That’s a good idea. I do it, too. But if you see the way GOProud is exploiting its coup in getting Ann Coulter to speak to its Homocon event, you begin to understand what a mistake this is for a conservative icon like Coulter.”

“This event and the tea-party movement are not about making money,” Farah said. “If we’re serious about changing the direction of the country, we’ve got to start policing ourselves. We hope real tea-party groups all across Florida and the U.S. join us in Miami next month to celebrate the political rebirth of this country and help us strategize about the future.”